Atlas of Creative Tools /

Perpetual Prompt

Perpetual prompt, sometimes called Continuous Writing, is a tool that often leads people to surprising discoveries. That is because the act of repeating the same prompt over and over can force us to dig deeper, rather than responding with the first, second, or third thing that comes to mind. Follow along with John as he introduces Perpetual Prompt, shares a prompt with you to work with, and guides you through the process of engaging with the theme for five minutes. The theme in this version is about where you come from, and can reveal interesting notions of memory, identity, and even origin stories.

Overview

To begin, get a piece of paper and something to write with. We encourage you to try what John suggests, and write by hand rather than using a keyboard. After John describes how to use the tool Perpetual Prompt and shares the prompt with you, there will be a 5 minute on-screen timer, during which you will write your responses to the prompt. When the timer concludes, John shares some final thoughts about what you can do with your writing.

As John says, there are lots of things you can do with the writing you generated by using Perpetual Prompt. Sharing in a group not only allows people to get to know each other, but also reveals different ways of interpreting the prompt “I come from…”. I can be very fruitful to first use the tool, share out the responses, and then go back to writing with the same prompt after having heard how others engaged with it. You might also try different prompts, which can be especially helpful when you are looking for a way to begin a discussion around a certain topic by starting from people’s lived experiences.